The town that preserves the art of glass

The Vladimir Region to the northeast of Moscow is among the richest in Russia in terms of cultural and artistic heritage, from Murom to the east on the Oka River to Gorokhovets and Viazniki on the Kliazma River, not to mention Suzdal and Vladimir itself.

Each of the towns in the Vladimir Region has an abundance of architectural monuments from several centuries. Often overlooked in
this wealth, however, is the town with the curious name of Goos (pronounced “goose”)
Khrustalny, located on the small Goos River, a left tributary of the Oka.
Although there are competing claims for the original derivation of the word,
the town’s name is generally understood as “Crystal Goose”—appropriate in view
of its role as a center of glass production in Russia from the middle of the
18th century.

Located some 35 miles south of the
regional center of Vladimir, the settlement was first
mentioned simply as “Goos” in documents from the 17th century. By the middle of
the 18th century, Goos came into the possession of the Maltsov merchant
dynasty, considered the leading Russian producers of glass. In 1756, Akim
Maltsov opened a glass factory at the village with assets transferred from his
father’s holdings in the Mozhaisk region.

The enterprise
rapidly grew, and the Goos River was dammed to create the essential factory
pond. Expanded in the 1850s, the pond exists to this day at the center of the
town park. In reward for his services to Russian commerce, Akim Maltsov was
granted nobility status in 1775, which in turn enhanced his ability to acquire
property and serfs for the factory workforce.

For almost six
decades in the 19th century, the Goos factory belonged to Akim’s grandson, Ivan
Maltsov, who not only introduced innovations such as Bohemian style glass
products, but also began textile production as employment for the growing
number of women in the factory settlement.

A decisive moment in the development
of the town occurred following Ivan Maltsov’s visit to French glassworks in
1838. There he noted effective ways in which workers’ housing and services were
grouped around the factory complex. This provided the basis for the model
factory town that flourished after 1880 under the direction of the new owner,
Maltsov’s nephew Yury Nechaev-Maltsov.

During the late 19th
century the town also witnessed rapid expansion of the textile factory, whose
imposing brick buildings are still the most visible factory presence in town.
(The buildings of the glass factory, in contrast, are less noticeable.)

In the
late 20th century the town’s factories—and particularly the glassworks—endured
a period of decline and severe economic crisis that resulted in the loss of
much of the skilled workforce, including master artists. Currently, the
regional administration has sponsored attempts to attract new investors, but
the process of revival will be long and complicated.

Fortunately, many of
the town’s buildings, including brick factory cottages, have been well
preserved. And the center of Goos Khrustalny is quite appealing, with its small
squares and rebuilt 19th-century Trading Center.Near the town center is the main parish Church of Sts.
Joachim and Anna, originally built as a neoclassical rotunda in 1816 and
expanded over the next several decades.

Damaged during the church’s use as a
workshop during the Soviet era, the interior and its vibrant wall paintings
from the turn of the 20th century are now being carefully restored.

Late 19th-century
church architecture is handsomely represented by the large Chapel of Saint
Barbara, with its profusely ornate architectural detail and an attractive park
setting, but the main architectural landmark is the monumental Church of St. George,
built in 1892-1904 to a design by the prominent Petersburg architect Leonty Benois.

In 1926, the
church was converted to a factory club and its cupolas and bell tower removed.
Despite these losses, however, the superbly constructed basic structure was
preserved and in 1973-1983, the interior was restored as part of the conversion
of the building to a museum of artistic crystal—a function that it serves to
this day.

The appearance of the
Church of St. George, with its basilical plan,
elongated nave and romanesque details, is unusual by traditional Orthodox
standards. But the interior and its remarkable surviving art is beautifully
served by the extended open space, marked by Romanesque style columns of
polished labradorite from the Zhitomir area.

The main artist was the renowned
Viktor Vasnetsov (1848-1926), one of the most popular of Russian painters. For
the main altar space in the east, he designed a magnificent mosaic (made by the
Petersburg firm of A. N. Frolov) portraying the Assembly of Mary Mother of God
in a composition known by the name of a hymn to the Virgin, “In Thee Rejoiceth.”

Unfortunately, the icon screens created by Vasnetsov were destroyed during the
Soviet period. Back toward the west, however, there is a no-less-spectacular
work of art, Viktor Vasnetsov’s vast canvas depicting the Last Judgment, portrayed in the manner of
17th-century frescoes such as the St. Sophia Cathedral in Vologda.

In this painting,
those who have been found worthy of salvation are on right hand of the enthroned
Savior, while the damned are on left, with a resurrected soul being weighed in
the center. The righteous are dressed in traditional Russian clothing (partly
justified by the presence of medieval saints among them), but the damned are
luridly portrayed as writhing, naked bodies in the grip of wanton passions and
evil deeds. Their faces often have a contemporary urban character, particularly
noticeable in the hair styles.

This extraordinary work of
art raises many questions deserving more extensive discussion. Removed when the
church was converted into a club, this bold painting miraculously
survived—perhaps in deference to Vasnetsov’s prestige among the Soviet elite.
With the restoration of the structure as a glass museum, Vasnetsov’s “Last
Judgment” was returned to its original space on the west wall. There it rests
in all its glory within the Museum of Artistic Crystal. That alone justifies a
trip to the enchanting town of Crystal Goose.